700 and counting for record breaker Mark “Chuck” Berry
In this day in age, it’s a rarity that you come across a loyal footballer, however Moss Vale Football Club’s Mark “Chuck” Berry certainly brings light to devotion to a club following his 700th milestone appearance for the Highlands Soccer Association based side over the weekend.
The 60-year-old Sydney-born football tragic who has been labelled as the ‘Minister of Defence’ for his beloved Moss Vale FC 3rd grade All Age Men’s side was overwhelmed with joy following the special celebrations that took place following his amazing achievement when they took on Mittagong at their home ground of Chruch Rd.
“The club was amazing; they had been secretly planning this for weeks,” Berry stated to Football NSW.
“I hadn’t actually realised it was my 700th game until just before running out of the dressing room when a teammate who keeps a track of statistics said it was my 700th match. I thought, there you go, that’s pretty cool, then I ran out and there was my team, the opposition, the women’s teams who were playing on the next field over, and a whole bunch of friends, family and former teammates all forming a guard of honour from the dressing room out to the field.
“I ran through to cheers, and I was totally gobsmacked.
“Then I was given a ball with the club’s logo and “Chuck 700 games” printed on it to kick off with.
“After I kicked off, as soon as the ball went out, it was replaced and later presented to me, signed by all my teammates in a Perspex box.
“After the game, which we won 2-0, there was a presentation in the clubhouse, with food, photos of me playing in a slide show, speeches, and the presentation of the ball.
“There was also a playing shirt, framed, on the clubhouse wall with a plaque saying Mark Chuck Berry 700 games, 25/5/24.”
Berry believes that by his count, he has cracked the 800 plus mark for player appearances overall if you consider his time prior to Moss Vale FC, where he commenced his journey into the world of football as a young footballer in Bexley as a five-year-old joining the St George Police Boys club as well as Forest Rangers.
From there on “Chuck” moved to the Southern Highlands where he registered for Bowral in the Under 16’s before making the decision to play for the All-Age Mens Australian National University (ANU) and UNSW side, then joining Moss Vale FC in 1990 where he has been playing ever since.
“If you count my 6 years playing for ANU and UNI NSW teams, I’ve actually played probably close to 800 games.”
Asked whether there was any secret to playing to playing so many matches all those years, Berry has been fortunate that he has remained major injury free that has allowed him to crack such an accolade.
“I think the secret has been luck with avoiding injuries.
“A lot of my former teammates have had to stop playing with dodgy knees, hips, and ankles.
“The only injury of note for me is a broken collarbone, and as it happened in a Final I didn’t miss any matches as it was healed by the following season.”
Football is life for Berry who continues to enjoy the world game and all that comes with it.
“Football is all about being part of a team, connecting with teammates, not taking it too seriously, just enjoying playing together, and after the game having a chat and a laugh over a few drinks, reliving the highs and lows of the game just played.”
The question remained however, how much petrol in the tank did “Chuck” have to continue this football love story with his beloved Moss Vale FC?
“I have never set goals in football; I just love playing and will keep going for a few more years if I can.
“I doubt I’ll get to 1000 appearances for Moss Vale FC but you never know.”
The 5 most one club appearances by a football player:
1. Ryan Giggs – Manchester United – 963
2. Francesco Totti – Roma – 786
3. Igor Akineev – CSKS Moscow – 750
4. Jamie Carragher – Liverpool – 737
5. Mark ” Chuck” Berry – Moss Vale – 700 and counting
-By Mark Stavroulakis
